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Apr 8, 2010
Learn from Ng Teng Fong
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I COMMEND Ms Sandra Leong on her commentary last Saturday on elite Singapore students with inbred exclusionary attitudes ('Scoring high in grades but not in values').
One prime example supporting her is Singapore's richest man, the late property tycoon Ng Teng Fong. Mr Ng had little education and could hardly understand legal documents, yet he made his fortune by relying on his gut instinct and intuitive assessment of the situation. He did not speak proper English, but the Henghua dialect of his ancestral city of Putian, Fujian province, China, which is also the home town of other successful entrepreneurs in South-east Asia.
Is it a coincidence that Singapore's richest man is one of the least educated, that Mr Li Ka Shing, the richest man in Hong Kong and Asia, never went to university, and Mr Bill Gates, one of the richest men in the United States and the world, dropped out of Harvard University?
Instead of focusing only on straight As, more Singaporeans should adopt more of Mr Ng's values, which include daring to take risks and being willing to risk failure and bankruptcy.
Toh Han Shih
Learn from Ng Teng Fong
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<!-- end left side bar --><!-- story content : start -->
I COMMEND Ms Sandra Leong on her commentary last Saturday on elite Singapore students with inbred exclusionary attitudes ('Scoring high in grades but not in values').
One prime example supporting her is Singapore's richest man, the late property tycoon Ng Teng Fong. Mr Ng had little education and could hardly understand legal documents, yet he made his fortune by relying on his gut instinct and intuitive assessment of the situation. He did not speak proper English, but the Henghua dialect of his ancestral city of Putian, Fujian province, China, which is also the home town of other successful entrepreneurs in South-east Asia.
Is it a coincidence that Singapore's richest man is one of the least educated, that Mr Li Ka Shing, the richest man in Hong Kong and Asia, never went to university, and Mr Bill Gates, one of the richest men in the United States and the world, dropped out of Harvard University?
Instead of focusing only on straight As, more Singaporeans should adopt more of Mr Ng's values, which include daring to take risks and being willing to risk failure and bankruptcy.
Toh Han Shih
